Join us the first week of May for the 10th Annual Power Wagons in Moab. Whether your truck is stock or modified, there will be something for everyone. Take in the sights, make new friends and hit the trails to test your skills.

Hotels:
Sleep Inn, Quality Suites are the closet hotels to the daily rally point with decent prices. Big Horn Lodge is one of cheapest hotels in town but is located more centrally in Moab. Ne sure to make reservations sooner than later.

Camping:

There will be a group camping at Yellow Circle Road: 38.426606, -109.420002 Straight boondocking. No hookups, no water, notta. Pack it in, pack it out.

There are LOTS of climbs. Trails are mixed; dirt and small rocks, Sand, Washboard roads etc... So be prepared. Don’t just count on someone else in the group being prepared.

-------------------------------COMMS:

* thanks to @aearles for compiling this information

We didn't have comms last year, but this year it's a requirement. We are using comms to keep things organized on the trail.

Official trail communications will be on GMRS/FRS shared channels. We believe this will be the easiest for most people to obtain, should perform better than CB, and doesn't require testing like ham. If you have a GMRS license, you can use a Midland MXT-105 mobile radio, or BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio handheld. I suggest using an external antenna if possible to improve range. You can obtain a GMRS license for $65 here: http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls/index.htm?job=home

If you do not want to get GMRS license/hardware, you can use FRS walkies on these same channels, you can get these for ~$30 at Walmart or Amazon. The range will be limited but should be acceptable with the size of our group and the speeds we'll be traveling. I highly recommend that you at least bring a walky to use, it will improve everyone's experience.

For those running Baofeng Handhelds, @aearles put together a small config with all of the relevant channels. You can use CHIRP to flash this image to your device.

1-3 FRS Primary, Secondary, and Backup. We will only change from primary if there is interference on the channel. If others are using our frequency it's best to just move to the next.

11-14 Common Ham Simplex Channels for monitoring. 13 is the assigned simplex frequency for Hams in our group. TX is disabled in the non-ham configuration.

21-25 Ham repeaters accessible in the area. TX is disabled on the non-ham configuration.

41-50 Weather channels, these are set to skip when scanning but are programmed in case you need to check weather forcast/conditions.

Those of us with Ham Radio licenses will plan to use 146.400 for simplex. This will allow us to communicate over greater distances than FRS/GMRS and we can relay to those nearby as needed. There's good repeater details in the first post as well, this should be helpful for reaching town or other hams without cell service.

If you're not licensed but are interested in improving your mobile communications, it's very easy to get licensed and has a lot of advantages. The test is very easy to pass, costs $0-$15 depending on the testing center, and licenses are issued within about one week. I can help you get started if you're interested, PM @aearles.

-------------------------------NAVIGATION:
Each vehicle should have navigation of some type, be it paper maps or digital. I strongly encourage everyone to get a copy of Guide to Moab, UT Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails. We will make use of this book during the trip and it will help you identify whats ahead on the trails we do.

-------------------------------FIRST AID: Bring any special meds you need. Bring some general comfort items and SPF 30+ sunscreen. First aid is essential traveling in the back country. Don't rely on others.

Something as simple as an Adventure Medical Kit should suffice: http://amzn.to/2ifD12P and is good to have on hand in your vehicle anyways.

-------------------------------SURVIVAL:BRING WATER, everyone should have 1-2 gallons of water per day, per person in your vehicle. It’s the desert, and it’s hot. Don’t be stupid.

We are usually be on the trails for most of the whole day if not longer, so pack accordingly. Bring a cooler, bring snacks, sandwiches, whatever.

Don’t forget your camera!

-------------------------------PARTICIPANTS:

Just reply that you are confirmed and I can add you. I want to gather our contact details so no one gets left out or missed when they arrive.

MikeKey

gtomike60

Allen8511

DamageWagon

2011bigred

reivaxram97

Mr Crit

aearles

awdanthony

nebmike

n/a (facebook) Chris Sisseck

Jeff50316

Pit Slave

n/a (facebook) Xavier Richardson

RAM4ROKS

Chris-CA

Bosswagon13

n/a (facebook) Kish Ramirez

StormRider

n/a (facebook) Nicholas Baker

MADMIKE87

Yellowranger1

Frq flyr

Last edited by MikeKey on Sat Apr 29, 2017 10:22 am, edited 32 times in total.

We'll do an official confirmation sign up in January, and I'll have an itinerary with something for everyone. Probably going to hit up Moab again myself this fall when it cools down a bit more, and do some more research.

In my hometown I used to run the local Camaro & Firebird (F-body) club and have some experience organizing rallies and shows and such.

Well I just double checked on my vacation. I'm off work from oct 21 till November 1. So I could be out there sat the 22 till Tuesday the 25 or I could get out there Friday the 28 and stay till Monday. I'm good with either. Would love it if you guys could make it since I've never been there

Subscribed! I am very interested but not sure if the dates work. I will watch the thread and as we get closer, I will jump in if I'm able. I also see the Overland Expo is the following weekend in Flag Staff (May 12th-14th). Man, if I could get two weeks off in a row! That's would be AWESOME!

Maybe a bit of a silly question but, what are accommodation plans? Like day wheeling trips and returning to hotel for the night? Trying to convince my wife on this for a big trip for us but, if it involves primitive camping on the trail, I know that'll be a solid no go! She's not one much for wheeling anyway but I am hoping the amazing scenery will make up for that! (gotta get her on board so I can go!)

Wife and me are planning on going out next year. Years past. We stayed at one of the hotels in town. That's what we are planning for next year too. Wheeled during the day, and partied at night. Have a picture some where of Pitslave passed out, and curled up like a baby in Leif's condo.

I would love to, but we are actually planning a 2-4 month open ended trip starting the week after Christmas :delicious: when we actually start working like normal people again, we are planning on a week trip to Colorado in June or August to do the Alpine Loop and a few other trails. Something closer to those times would be more reasonable to us.

RAM4ROKS wrote:Maybe a bit of a silly question but, what are accommodation plans? Like day wheeling trips and returning to hotel for the night? Trying to convince my wife on this for a big trip for us but, if it involves primitive camping on the trail, I know that'll be a solid no go! She's not one much for wheeling anyway but I am hoping the amazing scenery will make up for that! (gotta get her on board so I can go!)

Mike Key had his Airstream,so,he and his family stayed at a campground.
A couple of us were staying in hotels,and one couple slept in the bed of their truck under the stars.
But we're back in town every night.

I'm trying to get my wife to go as well,but she's a city girl.lol
I'll still be going,either by myself,or with one of my friends

Yea - I think hotel stay will be best. I was going to start working out details. A few guys who have been there might want to suggest hotels. I think an over night camp trip would be sweet, but with kiddo's it's tough. We'll probably bring the Airstream again and camp ourselves.

What I want though, is an itinerary, and a rally point. I have a few easy gives, like we should most def have a group cookout, one big group breakfast and a group dinner out. Wheeling during the day, start easy, work way up. Hit up all the places/trails that are the most fun but also provide the best photo ops. As much as we all like to wheel, a place like Moab is a place you like sharing photos off. There will be something for everyone.

We didn't do the White Rim Trail as a group last year, but it's really easy. I had a friend who wrote up this itinerary to get his "high fashion city wife" into it and he started with easy stuff and worked her into it over a couple of days. But I was thinking, maybe the White Rim Trail and a tailgate party would be a good introduction day. It's mostly dirt road with amazing views of Canyonlands driving along a Canyon Rim.

We're mostly settled down in Boise, ID now in the new place and I'm getting more free time to start putting something together. Part of the reason I haven't been around the site for the past month is dealing with the move from Airstream life to sticks and bricks.

What we used to do is on Saturday was the scenic trail ride, and Sunday was the tech trail ride. Both days, stop on the trail for a group lunch. Would meet in the morning for breakfast. Most times at Denny's. After the trail ride. Meet over at the condo's where some was staying and have a cook out. Bring your own meat, and share the veggies.